1. Field of the Invention
This application relates in general to a cleaning device and in particular to a cleaning device for a processing equipment which uses a processing liquid.
2. Description of the Related Art
A processing equipment, such as a spin coater, usually includes a plurality of pipes to guide a liquid for processing. For example, referring to FIG. 1, a conventional spin coater C includes an exhaust pipe P1 communicated with a drain pipe P2. In a semiconductor manufacturing process, such as a photolithography process, a substrate S is disposed on a chuck of the spin coater C. When the substrate S spins, the processing liquid including photo resister and the cleaning liquid (such as a photo resister thinner or a dilution agent) are flung out of the substrate S and discharged through the exhaust pipe P1, as the arrows A1 and A2 indicate in FIG. 1.
Generally, the drain pipe P2 is connected to the exhaust pipe P1 of the spin coater C via a piping clamp P12. Owing to the long distance of the drain pipe P2, progressive crystallization and deposition of the photo resister may occur and clog the drain pipe P2, as the region R1 shows in FIG. 1. The residue liquid in the drain pipe P2 subsequently flows to a drain tank T, and is discharged through a curved pipe P3 to a facility piping system. However, crystallization and deposition of the photo resister may also lead to clogging in the curved portion P3, as the region R2 shows in FIG. 1.
It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a cleaning device, for the processing equipment, that improves the clogging in the pipes of the processing equipment.